Mumbai received its first pre-monsoon shower last night, 20 May 2009. According to the Meteorological Department, the monsoon is due to arrive in the city around June 8, 2009. It's very difficult to give an accurate prediction though. As usual, Mumbai is hopelessly unprepared for the monsoon rains. What's even more concerning is that the Department has predicted that city will have the highest tide in 100 years -- 5.05 meters -- on July 24. Mumbai's municipal council has admitted that it isn't equipped to handle more than 25 millimeters of rain per hour, coupled with a high tide of more than 4.5 meters. The consequences could be disastrous. In the case of high rainfall, widespread flooding will result and the city could be brought to a standstill for days. A similar thing happened on July 26, 2005 -- and the tide was only 4.48 meters high! The municipal council has advised visitors to stay away from Mumbai on or around July 24, 2009. There's no guarantee that the adverse weather conditions will eventuate. However, with the monsoon being so unpredictable, it sounds like a good idea.
After seeing the below photo though, maybe it's not all bad:
Thank you for the article. We are due to arrive in Mumbai, Aug 5, 2009. We will look forward to your updates and from those already in Mumbai.
ReplyDeleteWell this should be an interesting experience for all of us, hmm?
ReplyDeleteGreat! We land on the 26th - hopefully safely and somewhat dry!
ReplyDeleteEarlier this week was a DISASTER! The city was essentially at a standstill. You coulnd't get a cab or auto-rickshaw anywhere and going outside was not advisable. We were staying at a good hotel but it lost internet, as did Hiranandani hospital and also the hotel we're currently at so no high-speed connection or skyping. Be prepared to survive without the internet. I highly recommend that you have a cell phone that works in India or buy an Indian cell phone as soon as you arrive so that you can stay in touch with everyone. Incoming calls are free with Indian cell phones. Getting them is is a pain though, you need a copy of your passport and 2 passport photos but you can get those done in India for rupees. The other requirement is that you must have a permanent Indian address but I put down the hotel and they accepted that (even though technically they should not have) If possible stay as close to your clinic or hospital as possible so that worst case scenario you can walk there or the hotel can arrange local transportation. There have been some power outages too but most of the good hotels have generators so that shouldn't be a problem if you are staying in a decent hotel.
ReplyDeleteThe monsoon has really only affected us one day here. Otherwise it is drizzly rain. Not that bad. And we had sunshine today and sat by the pool for a bit!! We were really nervous also when we were planning, but we have been quite surprised with the lack of rain.
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